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Comparing the Profitability of a Greenhouse to a Vertical Farm in Quebec

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  • James Eaves
  • Stephen Eaves

Abstract

Rapidly growing demand for year†round fresh food, regardless of the weather or climate, is driving demand for controlled environment agriculture systems. Sales from greenhouses (GHs) are growing at 8.8%, while sales from vertical farms (VFs) are growing at 30%. It is commonly believed in industry circles that a VF cannot economically compete with a GH, due to the high cost of powering artificial lighting. Nonetheless, researchers have yet to analyze the economics underlying a VF, let alone compare the profitability of a VF to that of a GH. This research gap is particularly relevant to Canada, as it is uniquely positioned to be a leader in the VF market. Below, we report the results of a detailed simulation of the profitability of growing lettuce in a VF and in a GH located near Quebec City. Surprisingly, we find that the costs to both equip and run the two facilities are very similar, while the gross profit is slightly higher for the VF.La demande croissante pour des aliments frais tout au long de l'année, peu importe la météo ou le climat, fait grimper la demande pour des systèmes agricoles à environnement contrôlé. Les ventes de produits provenant de serres augmentent à un taux de 8,8 %, tandis que ceux des fermes verticales affichent une augmentation de 30 %. L'on croit souvent en milieux industriels que les fermes verticales ne peuvent se mesurer économiquement aux serres parce que ces dernières doivent composer avec les coûts électriques élevés des lumières artificielles. Pourtant, aucun chercheur n'a encore analysé les données économiques propres à une ferme verticale, ni même comparé la rentabilité d'une ferme verticale à celle d'une serre. Ce vide dans la recherche s'avère particulièrement pertinent au Canada puisqu'il se positionne comme chef de file du marché des fermes verticales. Ci†dessous, nous rapportons les résultats d'une simulation détaillée de la rentabilité de la production de laitue dans une ferme verticale et dans une serre près de la Ville de Québec. Les résultats surprenants démontrent que les coûts pour équiper et exploiter ces deux exploitations se ressemblent et que les profits bruts sont légèrement plus élevés pour la production en ferme verticale.

Suggested Citation

  • James Eaves & Stephen Eaves, 2018. "Comparing the Profitability of a Greenhouse to a Vertical Farm in Quebec," Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics/Revue canadienne d'agroeconomie, Canadian Agricultural Economics Society/Societe canadienne d'agroeconomie, vol. 66(1), pages 43-54, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:bla:canjag:v:66:y:2018:i:1:p:43-54
    DOI: 10.1111/cjag.12161
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    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/cjag.12161
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Tropp, Debra, 2013. "Why Local Food Matters: The rising importance of locally-grown food in the U.S. food system," Technical Resources 160752, United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Marketing Service, Transportation and Marketing Program.
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    Cited by:

    1. Dongdong Jia & Wenzhong Guo & Lichun Wang & Wengang Zheng & Guohua Gao, 2024. "Design and Experiment of Automatic Transport System for Planting Plate in Plant Factory," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-26, March.
    2. Esther Sanyé-Mengual & Francesco Orsini & Giorgio Gianquinto, 2018. "Revisiting the Sustainability Concept of Urban Food Production from a Stakeholders’ Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-19, June.
    3. Zhang, Zitian & Rod, Michael & Hosseinian, Farah, 2021. "A Comprehensive Review on Sustainable Industrial Vertical Farming Using Film Farming Technology," Sustainable Agriculture Research, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 10(1).
    4. Sandhya Adhikari & Gresha Suwal & Binita Suwal & Nisha Bashyal & Roshma Pandey, 2021. "Plant Breeding Approaches For Combating Impact Of Climate Change In Agriculture Production: A Review," Tropical Agroecosystems (TAEC), Zibeline International Publishing, vol. 2(1), pages 1-5, January.
    5. Caixia Ivy Gan & Ruth Soukoutou & Denise Maria Conroy, 2022. "Sustainability Framing of Controlled Environment Agriculture and Consumer Perceptions: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-17, December.
    6. Michael Martin & Elvira Molin, 2019. "Environmental Assessment of an Urban Vertical Hydroponic Farming System in Sweden," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(15), pages 1-14, July.
    7. Michael Martin & Sofia Poulikidou & Elvira Molin, 2019. "Exploring the Environmental Performance of Urban Symbiosis for Vertical Hydroponic Farming," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(23), pages 1-18, November.
    8. Francis J. Baumont de Oliveira & Scott Ferson & Ronald A. D. Dyer & Jens M. H. Thomas & Paul D. Myers & Nicholas G. Gray, 2022. "How High Is High Enough? Assessing Financial Risk for Vertical Farms Using Imprecise Probability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-29, May.
    9. Dafni Despoina Avgoustaki & George Xydis, 2020. "Indoor Vertical Farming in the Urban Nexus Context: Business Growth and Resource Savings," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-18, March.
    10. Rachael Warner & Bo-Sen Wu & Sarah MacPherson & Mark Lefsrud, 2023. "How the Distribution of Photon Delivery Impacts Crops in Indoor Plant Environments: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-14, March.
    11. Ernesto Olvera-Gonzalez & Nivia Escalante-Garcia & Deland Myers & Peter Ampim & Eric Obeng & Daniel Alaniz-Lumbreras & Victor Castaño, 2021. "Pulsed LED-Lighting as an Alternative Energy Savings Technique for Vertical Farms and Plant Factories," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-16, March.

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